MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

WorldNetDaily – “A rising leader in the radical Islamic movement in Egypt that has become a major political player since the demise of Hosni Mubarak’s regime says Christian churches may need to be blown up and Christians exterminated to allow the advance of Islamic law, or Shariah.

The comments come from Sheik ‘Adel Shehato, a senior leader with the Egyptian Islamic Jihad terrorist group…

The sheik, a senior jihadist leader, responded to a question about using violence against Christians, who make up a substantial minority in Egypt.

‘Are you against blowing up churches?’ the newspaper interviewer asked Shehato.

‘Yes and no,’ he replied. ‘The Christian is free to worship his God in his church, but if the Christians make problems for the Muslims, I will exterminate them. I am guided by the Shariah, and it stipulates that they must pay the jizya tax while in a state of humiliation.’

‘These positions of yours frighten us, as Egyptians,’ the interviewer said.

‘I will not act [in ways] that contradict my faith just in order to please the people. … We say to the Christians, convert to Islam or pay the jizya, otherwise we will fight you. The Shariah is not based on logic but on divine law. That is why we oppose universal, manmade constitutions.’ …

Among the many assertions made by the senior Islamic leader was that the Egyptian pyramids need to be closed down to tourists.

‘There will be tourism for purposes of [medical] treatment, but the tourism sites of the pyramids, the Sphinx, and Sharm Al-Sheikh will be shut down, because my task is to get people to serve Allah rather than people. No proud Muslim will ever be willing to live off tourism profits, because the tourists come to drink alcohol and fornicate. [If they] want to come, they must comply with the conditions and laws of Islam. We will explain to them that, according to the Shariah, the pyramids are [from] a pagan and polytheistic age.’

He continued with a description of the new state of arts and culture in Egypt, should he be in power.

‘In Islam, there is no such thing as art. Painting, singing, and dancing are forbidden. Therefore, in the state there will be nothing but Islamic culture, for I cannot teach the infidel culture. … We will return to the decent culture of the Muslims and the Muslim forefathers, and to Islamic history,’ he said.

The far-reaching interview included his plans for worldwide government.” Read more.

By Patrick Goodenough – “A Shi’ite cleric affiliated with the Iranian regime has warned about the ‘danger’ of Christianity spreading in the Islamic republic. This come amid reports of an anti-Christianity propaganda campaign and the seizure of thousands of Bibles.

According to Mohabat News, an independent Iranian Christian news agency, Ayatollah Hadi Jahangosha expressed concern about ‘the spread of Christianity among our youth,’ citing the availability of Christian satellite television programs, books and objects.

‘Everyone in society should feel responsibility in this matter and play his or her role in spreading of pure Islam and fight false and distorted cultures,’ Mohabat quoted him as saying during a presentation on Mahdism – the belief in the so-called ‘hidden’ or 12th imam, prophesied to emerge at a time of future chaos.

Last week, Mohabat reported that authorities had seized 6,500 pocket-sized Bibles in northwestern Iran. It quoted a parliamentary advisor, Majid Abhari, as telling the Mehr news agency that Christian missionaries were out to deceive Iranians, particularly the youth.

‘They have begun a huge campaign by spending huge sums and false propaganda for deviating the public,’ Abhari said. ‘The important point in this issue that should be considered by intelligence, judicial and religious agencies is that all religions are strengthening their power to confront Islam, otherwise what does this huge number of Bibles mean?’

Mohabat recalled previous incidents of Bibles being seized, including one last February, when Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and security officials in a routine inspection of a bus near the Iran-Turkey border found 600 New Testaments, which they destroyed along with confiscated alcohol in a public burning.

A similar incident in the same area last October also saw officials seize and burn Bibles, it said.” Read more.

By Jennifer Pak – “Muslim women without headscarves are a common sight on the streets of the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur.

But engaging them in a discussion about the hijab is difficult.

Norhayati Kaprawi is a Malaysian activist whose recent documentary Aku Siapa (Who Am I) deals with the issue of how women in Malaysia should dress. She found some women unwilling to show their faces in her film – not on religious grounds, but becasue they feared reprisals.

This is a damning reflection on Malaysia’s Muslim society, says Ms Norhayati.

‘It’s full of fear. If you don’t follow the mainstream you will be lynched.’

According to the activist, the pressure to wear the hijab grew after the Iranian revolution in 1979, and it is now the most visible sign of Malaysia’s rising Islamic fundmentalism.

Muslims account for over half the population of 28 million people and are mainly ethnic Malays. Malaysia often prides itself on being a moderate Muslim nation, which allows other religions freedom of worship.

And while there are no laws forcing women to wear the hijab, Ms Norhayati says many Muslims feel compelled.” Read more.

Flashback: Muslim Group in Malaysia Declares Jihad Against Christians Who … Disagree With Them – “An umbrella coalition of Muslim groups held a protest today and declared bloodshed against ‘extremist’ Christians that insult and ridicule the position of Islam in the country. The Muslim Organisations in Defence of Islam (Pembela), comprising 20 groups, protested after Friday prayers at the National Mosque against Putrajaya’s release of Malay-language bibles and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s promise to never impound the Alkitab again.” Read more.

Flashback: Non-Muslims in Malaysia Who Recite Quranic Verses ‘Insincerely’ Can Be Charged With Blasphemy – “The government can take action against people who abuse Quranic verses for certain interests and dispute all forms of worship by Muslims in this country. Minister in the Prime Minister”s Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom said this followed the special conference of the National Fatwa Council on Dec 3 last year to discuss issues including abuse of Quranic verses. ‘The muzakarah agreed that non-Muslims who cite Quranic verses according to their own understanding without sincerity is an affront to the sanctity of al-Quran and can cause doubt and slander in society,’ he told Dewan Rakyat today.” Read more.

“More than seven months after Muslim extremists burned its church building, a Presbyterian Church of the Sudan (PCOS) congregation is still afraid to meet for worship, according to Christian sources.

The Rev Maubark Hamad said his church in Wad Madani, 138 kilometers (85 miles) southeast of Khartoum, has not been able to rebuild since the January 15 devastation due to the congregation’s meager resources.

‘Nothing has been done for the burned church building; so far it has not been rebuilt,’ he told Compass.

Christian sources said they are increasingly fearful as Muslim extremists pose more threats against Christians in an attempt to rid what they call Dar al Islam, the ‘Land of Islam’, of Christianity.

According to Rev Hamad, another church leader who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: ‘The increased challenges now faced by many Christians in North Sudan are something for which we need to pray very hard for the Lord to intervene.'” Read more.

“Mogadishu— Somali Islamist rebels have beheaded at least 11 civilians in the capital in the past two weeks, a campaign of terror that residents said Friday is designed to show the insurgency can still act in Mogadishu after withdrawing from their bases there earlier this month.

‘We wake up with beheaded bodies on the streets every day,’ said Abdinur Marwan, who lives in a district of Mogadishu called Hewila. ‘They call themselves Muslims while doing what Allah banned! Everyone is trying to leave here because people are being killed like goats.’

The Islamist al-Shabab militia withdrew from their bases in the Somali capital after being steadily pushed back by more heavily armed African Union forces supporting the U.N.-backed Somali government. The Islamists described the withdrawal as a ‘tactical retreat’ and said they would still carry out operations in the capital.” Read more.

Flashback: 4 Christian Orphanage Workers Beheaded in Somalia – “Somali Islamic extremists beheaded four Christians recently after kidnapping them last month, according to eyewitness accounts reported to International Christian Concern (ICC). Members of the Islamic extremist organization Al-Shabaab had kidnapped Fatima Sultan, Ali Ma’ow, Sheik Mohammed Abdi, and Maaddey Diil on July 27 from their coastal town of Merca, 56 miles from Mogadishu, and eventually beheaded the Christians after they refused to renounce their faith in Jesus Christ.” Read more.

Flashback: Somali Rebels ‘Behead Spies And Christians’ – “Somalia’s hard-line Islamist rebels beheaded seven people for being ‘Christians’ and ‘spies’, witnesses have said. The al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab group, which controls large tracts of south Somalia and parts of the capital Mogadishu, has carried out similar executions before. But the beheadings in the south central town of Baidoa were believed to be the largest number of killings at one time, Somalis said. ‘Al Shabaab told us that they were beheaded for reasons they described as being Christian followers and spies’…” Read more.

Flashback: Christian Aid Workers in Somalia Beheaded for Converting from Islam – “Muslim extremists from the al Shabab group fighting the transitional government on Sept. 23 sliced the head off of Mansuur Mohammed, 25, a World Food Program (WFP) worker, before horrified onlookers of Manyafulka village, 10 kilometers (six miles) from Baidoa. The militants had intercepted Mohammed and a WFP driver, who managed to escape, earlier in the morning. Sources close to Mohammed’s family said he converted from Islam to Christianity in 2005.” Read more.